ok,i'll only talk about the main story mode itself since i didnt do alot of the side-quests(i actually think i only did the bank and the stolen goods side-quest)

story's short,but good.although some parts may be confusing about the story some of it might actually makes sense to you.i wished the story is alot more longer.

and 'detailed characters'.the DJ didnt look important at all in the story especially since he was only used by Anne to bring Murphy to the station and thats it,he disappears along with the Screamers that took him.The mailman,well it dosent look like he's human at all but i would really like it if they actually tell us who is.

the monster design is great,but the doll,the doll is the worst enemy in all of the SH games,and for some reason that enemy dosent even make me feel like blocking it's attacks since there can be multiple shadows at the same time.anyways,i really liked the monsters,the Screamer can be scary sometimes.even when it is just standing there,like in the kitchen in the orphanage.that one actually scared me a bit even though she was just standing there.the carpark scare by the screamer was good too.

the town design was great,although i didnt explore all of it since i dont really like doing side-quests.and i think im actually the only one here who liked the Otherworld design very much.i like how everything is messed up in the otherworld.

the combat was great,no need for targetting was great.and the ability to throw objects was nice.it sucks though that we still get broken weapons,even with A METAL AXE.and i dont like how we cant equip the shotgun and the pistol at the same time.but at least the game dosent force us to fight and it looks like enemy's can actually be harmless not unless you start attacking them or get near them.

the only problems i have with this game is that the game lags ALOT and how we need to go through a few seconds before we can even access our map sometimes,which sucks.

the game was great,really liked how it was scary among all the 'new SHs'(SM comes close though,in my opinion).i hope that the next SH will be just like DP except there arent any lag issues or the maps and notes being in one place.and also i dont want an objective list again,not unless we're doing a sidequest.

I finished Downpour a few days ago and while I stated some of my cons in the Con-thread, I thought it would be nice to share what I actually liked about the game here.

First of all, I liked the story ALOT. It was the best since SH4 and really got me exalted and eager to know what would come next, what would happen to Murphy and so on. The end was really surprising and shocking.

The police cars making a siren sound when enemies were nearby was really spot on, and terrifying in a good way. It really made me scared, and I suppose if the gamer has some kind of criminal record himself/herself, it would've been even more scary. IMO this was actually one of the most measured and well-done aspects of Downpour.

The scene with Napier at the start of the game.... +1

I also enjoyed the chasing sequences with the Void. It really added to the plot and understanding of Murphy's past and his struggle with guilt. And they always got my heartbeat pumping.

Final opinion would be around 6.5/10, since there was alot of stuff I wasn't pleased with (as I mentioned in the other thread).

So, let's get right to business, shall we? I honestly can say that Downpour has broken my expectations of Team Silent's American branch, and spread the pieces all over the world. This game rebuilds the true meaning of suspensful gaming. Sure, it isn't NEARLY as frightening as the other games, mostly due to the monsters themselves, but i'll get into that later. I truly felt frightened at the beginning of the game, when i lost my flashlight, leaving only the lighter. The lighter itself poses a HUGE obstacle; combat. There is NO way to defend yourself when wielding the little glowing item, so it's either run (which is hard with the lighter) or fight blind. I, personally, chose the latter. My advice is pick up a crowbar, or another nearly unbrakable weapon, and just beat the living nightmares out of your living nightmares. Ha, puns. Okay, well that was my first review, hope to post more soon, love-Sillhuetto

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The lighter itself poses a HUGE obstacle; combat. There is NO way to defend yourself when wielding the little glowing item, so it's either run (which is hard with the lighter) or fight blind. I, personally, chose the latter.

I never noticed, honestly, but it's good to know some people can find that mechanic good, after the DOOM 3 situation.

The lighter itself poses a HUGE obstacle; combat. There is NO way to defend yourself when wielding the little glowing item, so it's either run (which is hard with the lighter) or fight blind. I, personally, chose the latter.

I never noticed, honestly, but it's good to know some people can find that mechanic good, after the DOOM 3 situation.

I personally don't think it'd be very realistic to be able to fight while holding a lighter; the flame would just go out. You can also easily switch to your weapon from your lighter pretty quick - for me, anyway. But then, I actually never had any problems with Downpour's controls and combat and felt that it was the easiest to use in the franchise. It wasn't perfect, but in comparison to the tank controls of the past games I think it did just fine.

Also: I liked using the lighter a lot because it gave me a closer look at some things without having to hold down the analog stick.

I think Downpour is a great Silent Hill Game. The main story is interesting, with great characters interaction and development.

But what really makes the game to me, are the side quests. You have to search the whole town to find them, which allows you to really appreciate the town as a character. I think the level design is really good, and making it an open world game was both bold and rewarding in that regard. I had the most fun while I made my way through the city and was searching for side quests.

Those missions are also quite imaginative, and every one of them feels unique. Some of them are really frightening, like the search for a beating heart, or that scene where you witness a murder and have to punish the murderer for what he did.

Vatra took their cues from shattered memories (the chase sequences, the phantomatic mood and apparitions) and they manage to make it their own.

To me, it's a great addition to the mythos, while being really different and having its own voice, and it's certainly a step in the right direction if we want the franchise to continue without making the same old games again.

Ok. Finally got to finish Downpour three weeks back... and finally got to post about it.

Altogether, I must say that it's the most ambiguous first SH playthrough so far. And I must admit that I didn't understand shit. Therefore, I don't want to ultimately judge the title nor put it yet on the SH scale.

The thing that struck me the most was the developers' willingness to completely change some gameplay aspects. It was a really cool mixture between exploration, puzzle solving, moster fighting and some innovative chase sequences. So yes, certainly, a pro was that it mostly didn't look like any Silent Hill.

About the story.. I don't know what to say as I still haven't figured it out completely. It seems to me as of quality, in the sense that it didn't resemble very much to any other precvious SH script. Moreover, during the cutscenes, you could see the absence of any direct fan service. That's a great thing- even though I must admit that it kind of lacked that cool SH cutscence vibe, maybe a shortage of emotions and intensity. Cutcenes seemed kind of random and maybe with too little hints or information. They held extremely undecipherable allusions, maybe for my taste. And the tuning too, I'd never guess when something was about to happen, or when a scene was supposed to anticipate a bigger event. A complete lack of intensity balance.

If anything, I must give credit the title for its subtlety. There was 0% exposition and nothing seemed overdone. Maybe a few cliche moments regarding some scares and features, but everything else was great.

I liked the character development, although a bit too misty for my taste, in the sense that the progression of the story lacks some of the protagonist's thoughts and personal observations on some events, thus keeping the audience completely in ignorance regarding some key facts. I like my mystery well warped up, but still measured. Revelations should come progressively, introduced by hints, not just splashed out all of the sudden.

My thoughts on the soundtrack are yet unfinished. I'm familiar with the Dexter scores, so I recognized Licht's sound in Downpour and his stilistic choices. I'm glad he didn't try to copycat Yamaoka but make his own version of horror while still maintaining true to the atmosphere of the title. Besides some Harry Potterish momements (*cough*Meet Jp*cough) and a few other oddish choices, I enjoyed the soundtrack.

An indubitable con was certainly the monster design. The Screamers and Minions were fine, but not sufficient. Nevermind, I found tolerable the poor monster design as the strong point of the game is rather the amazing ambient. The Otherworld was innovative and stunning. Nothing like anything before.

A thing that kind of annoyed me was the frequency of weapons. Ok, I'm for the by the way recyclable weapons; it makes the battle more authentic and realistic. But god, just tune it down a bit- I don't really wan't to pick every single rock or bottle I find on the streets. It deviates the focus from the true goals.

As much as it regards gameplay features (monster battle, puzzling, chases..), everything was well balanced until the end. The last hour is filled with chases, constant battles, annoying traps and at the end it kind of cheapened the whole thing. I was so focused on battles and everything, that I really hadn't seen the ending coming. At all. I was like: 'Aand.. That's it?'.

All in all, nevermind me not figuring it out completely (yet), I liked the game and I'm ready to give it lots and lots of tries in the future in order to clear its ranking.